In a 2018 earnings conference call with analysts, Dearborn-based automaker Ford (F) He made a drastic decision that would drastically change the course of his story. At the time, CEO Jim Farley was not at the helm, but he would co-sign a move that would extend into his tenure as the company's top executive.
Farley agreed that Ford would stop making passenger cars for the U.S. market, except for the Mustang, to recover from declining profits tied to cars experiencing lower demand.
This move transformed Ford from a company that sold a diverse selection of hatchbacks, sedans, crossovers, SUVs, and compact trucks to one that only sells trucks, SUVs, crossovers, and Mustangs.
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In response to a question from UBS analyst Colin Langan during the call, Farley detailed his goals.
“We will have more authentic off-roaders, building on our Built Ford Tough experience like the Bronco and other new brands that we don't sell today. We will update our entire line of traditional crossovers and SUVs that everyone knows, like the Explorer and Escape,” Farley said at the time.
“We're going to introduce and take capital and redeploy it to new silhouettes, products that give customers utility benefits without the penalty of fuel economy. And they're going to be high-performance and they're going to be actively executed, so they're going to be very emotional.”
Ford CEO wants Ford to rival Porsche
During his tenure as Ford CEO, Jim Farley helped build the Blue Oval into a high-performance brand.
In recent years, it has offered customers a range of different high-performance models of its popular cars, SUVs and trucks, including the F-150, Ranger and Bronco Raptor models, the Mustang Mach-E Rally and the Ultra Limited Edition. Mustang GTD.
In an article for Automotive News at the Detroit Auto Show, Farley expressed his desire to increase the brand's presence in the off-road vehicle market.
The brand's SUVs already represent 20 percent of the approximately 2 million vehicles sold last year. However, it has even higher aspirations.
“Ford wants to be the undisputed number one off-road brand in the world,” Farley told Automotive News. “We want to be the Porsche of off-roading.”
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According to the latest sales data, Ford's flagship off-road vehicle, the high-riding, retro-styled Bronco SUV, is still eclipsed in sales figures by its Stellantis. (STLA) -owned rival, the iconic Jeep Wrangler.
According to their respective automakers, Jeep moved 151,164 Wranglers in 2024, a year rife with controversy and turmoil for its parent company. At the same time, Ford managed to get 109,172 Broncos off dealer lots and into the hands of enthusiasts.
While Stellantis and Jeep may eclipse Ford in sales, Farley and other Ford executives believe Ford has the edge over its rival. Ford actively participates as a factory-backed team in some of the toughest and most prestigious off-road motorsports events in the world.
Recently, he participated in the Dakar Rally, a grueling, multi-day off-road event in Saudi Arabia.
“We see a huge opportunity there,” Ford vice president of advanced product development Jim Baumbick told AN. “It's also about reinforcing the role that motorsports plays as a complement to some of these vehicle programs. We race in the Dakar not only to compete; “We are racing to learn, improve the product and reintroduce it into our product development to improve our capabilities.”
Related: Ford CEO says he's tired of making 'boring' cars
Ford CEO not interested in making 'boring cars'
This is far from the first time Farley or any other Ford executive has expressed the need to prioritize more aspirational, niche performance cars.
In a September 2024 interview with CAR magazine, Ford's CEO emphasized the need to build cars that help improve the brand's image with its customers.
“We're getting out of the boring car business and getting into the iconic vehicle business,” Farley told the magazine.
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